Goodbye
by Foot Pains
Summary: Leo looks back at the apartment one more time before leaving. He let a single tear drop as he left into the pouring rain. First story. Enjoy. Complete at last...
1. Chapter 1 Pilot

**All characters owned by**

**Scott Ramsoomair**

**This is my take of The Comedian, (please for the love of god read it before you read this. it's pretty funny.)But there will be no time traveling, just a very nice picnic. Well… after the shit before the picnic of course. Well let's go see what Leo is doing now shall we? Now just look at the words, read them, don't touch them that will hurt your screen. if you don't know how to read then you probably should not be here, unless someone is reading it to you, in that case you're a lazy bum and you need to learn how to read (unless your blind), but whatever just read (or listen to) the damn thing. (god i ramble too much..)**

He looked at the clock, 1:30AM.

"Time to go." Murmured Leo in a sad picked up the packed backpack. The clothes, water some food and 200$ he'd worked up, were all there. He only had one thing to do now write the note that would probably make her happy. took him 5 minutes to write the note saying he was leaving let a single tear drop, it landed directly on the last few words making them unreadable, just like he wanted it. It was sad that he had to leave, but he knew it was for the best… or so he thought. He opened her door just enough to get in. She was sleeping very deeply and did not notice. He looked at her and smiled a bit. She looked almost peaceful, he wondered what she was dreaming about. He shook his head, chasing away the thoughts, he remembered why he was here and his thoughts dampened again. He looked around her room, he would never see it again the young cat thought. The pink walls with skulls on them, the computer that she wrote her fan fics at. He blinked back tears. Then tip toeing across her room, he left the note next to her computer and placed the other item he was carrying next to the note and stuck the second sticky note on top of it. He looked back one last time to get a quick look at Aeris just before he left. "Goodbye Aeris." He said in a whisper. She moved a little in her sleep after he said that. He shut the door quietly and walked down the hallway looking at everything one last time before he left. He allowed one last tear to fall as he walked out the door. He stood there recollecting the events that happened just the noon before…

"Hey it's a good thing they called that game castle crashers." Leo said teasingly. "Because it crashes so much." He said finishing the joke. "Get it? Castles? Crashing? Crashers!" "LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL" He exclaimed rather loudly. "Oooh I'm so telling the internet that one." He continued "Oh hey here's another joke!" He said. What do you call a 360 that can't play games?" He asked rhetorically. "Yours. Red rings are 100% failure rate with me!" He said teasingly. "It's not like you can't find another one." He said. "There're easy to find. Easy like your mom. REAL EASY! He exclaimed. Aeris was already having a bad day but this was starting to tip it lower even more. "I mean she's no Wii but she sure is cheap!" He explained. "WHAT! I'm just going by what people have told me." He said "People who fucked her." He said in a whisper. "MANY PEOPLE. Get a stamp every time! Twelve and you get Anal! It's like a free sub! He Exclaimed." Only it's Buttsex!" She was at her boiling point, if he said one more thin-"Footl-NO!" Aeris interrupted. "SHUT UP LEO, IM TIRED OF THIS SHIT! ALL OF THE STUFF YOU DO IS RIDICULOUS!" He had a smile at first but it slowly started to fade. "Fuck I've really done it this time…" He thought. "DO YOU KNOW WHAT DAY IT IS? DO YOU?" His smile was completely gone now. She continued. "I FUCKING _HATE YOU!_" There was a sharp metal blade that came in her tone as she said those last two words. "WHY DON'T YOU JUST LEAVE ME ALONE? ALL YOU DO IS ACT LIKE AND IDIOT ALL THE TIME AND I'M SICK AND TIRED OF IT! GO FUCK YOUR SELF LEO! NO! ACTUALLY WHY DON'T YOU JUST LEAVE WITH THE LITTLE RESPECT I HAVE FOR YOU! I'M DONE WITH YOU AND YOU IDIOTCY! " She slammed the door as she left. She didn't even touch Leo. Bad sign, she always beat him. But she was extra furious today. Leo now sitting wide eyed on his bed was thinking of what she just said. Slightly shaken up he wondered why she ask him what day it was. He looked at the calenderer, September 14th. "Oh fuck..." Leo murmured. This was the day her mother and father died in a horrible car accident. He buried his head in his hands, he messed up big time this time. He could joke about it on any day but this day. She never knew her parents but she had already asked him not to make fun of his parents on this day. He waited about 15minutes for her to cool down then opened the door to his room and stood at her door for a second, took a deep breath, ran his hands through his hair and opened the door. He saw her sitting at her desk on her computer. She instantly stopped what she was doing. "H-Hey." Leo said scratching the back of his head. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry for what I sai-Stop." She interrupted, turning around in her swivel chair revealed to Leo that she was not cooled down yet. There was something hotter than lava in her eyes, as if Satan had moved to Aeris's eyes and took hell with him. "Leave my room,_ NOW." _Slightly scared he complied. _ "_Ok Aeris." He said as he left her room and shut her door. She would never forgive him for this. All the shit he played on her had now piled up and the pile just fell right on top of him. It was time he left… for her.

This brings us to where we are now with Leo standing in the rain. Leo looked one more time at the blue sedan they owned, and the apartment complex. He turned around and walked down the street towards the road that leads to Montreal, he would hitchhike a ride there. He walked down the street in the pouring rain, away from the home he lived for so long in.

End of Chapter 1/ Pilot

**Comment and rate please, first time so keep that in mind. (yes i know it's short and that will hopefully change) *UPDATE* If you like the idea and want to adopt it please wait until i am done with the story. I decided that i want to finish it then if someone wants to remake it they can after i'm done. Thx for support.**


	2. Chapter 2 On the Road

Start of chap 2

Aeris POV

She went to bed that night feeling a bit bad. Surprising she thought, that she felt bad. she didn't usually feel bad, but than again she didn't usually yell at him that much. And his face, there was no troll smile this time, just remorse. The truth was she had a long day she was tired and he was being a dumbass. It didn't bother her to much that he made the joke, it's just that she needed to blow off some steam that's all. It also surprised that he tried to apologize as well. He must have felt bad to want to apologize to her. She rolled over and stared at her desk. She felt bad for cutting him off, but she wasn't in the mood for talking. As for not hitting him, she was too tired to do anything but sit around. I hope he doesn't take it seriously she thought. She settled in to an uneasy sleep.

She had an interesting dream that night. It was her as a little girl with a small cat doll and in this dream she loved the doll very much, but one day she got mad and through the doll down. The doll figuring it was its fault got up and began to walk off. Little Aeris began to chase after it, it was walking towards a doorway, she kept running down this imaginary hallway, it seemed like she could never catch up. She tried to run faster and faster but was always 5 steps behind it. As the doll kept reaching for the door it began to get bigger, it was slowly growing. The doll finally reaches the door, but it was no longer a doll, but a full sized cat. The cat turned around and looked at Aeris. Aeris yelled. "Don't leave! I love you and I'm sorry!" But the damage had already been done. And in a shockingly familiar voice said. "Goodbye Aeris." And shut the door in her face. As this happened she awoke instantly, sweating. She looked at the clock. 2:03AM. She tried to go back to sleep. She soon realized that was not going to happen and she knew she needed to apologize to Leo for over reacting. She opened up her door and went over to Leo's door. She took a deep breath and ran her hands through her hair. She opened the door, when she went inside she noticed that Leo was not in his bed, she went all around his room checking the closet and he wasn't there she noticed blue pants and a blue jacket missing. His blue backpack was gone too. She went around the apartment looking for him. She finally went in to here room and out of the corner of her eye, she saw on her desk a note and a wrapped gift next to it. She went over and read the note.

_Dear Aeris,_

_If you are reading this I have left,_

_I'm sorry for all of the annoyance I caused you and I'm sorry about your parents. Look I'm sorry for everything, I guess I'm your storm cloud on a nice day or just the fuck up that ruins everything .I'm going to Montreal to see if I can start new there. I left 300$ that I worked up in an envelope in my desk. I also left my keys to the apartment there along with my DS and some games. There yours now. _

_Goodbye Aeris, have a good life._

_i w...u_

_Sincerely, Leo_

The last words were smeared out by what looked like water. She realized that she was crying, not on the paper though, that looks like it was done earlier. "Oh god what have I done?" She exclaimed. She knew she messed up bad. She looked in the drawer of the desk and sure enough she found the envelope the keys and his DS. She looked at the wrapped box and read the note on top. _Hope this makes up for last Christmas_. She recalls Leo working hard only to get the wrong game, but she played it all the same. She opened the gift wrap, it wasn't anywhere close to Christmas but it seemed more like a parting gift. She opened it and looked at it for a second. Tears came to her eyes and she began weeping uncontrollably. She sat there crying for a few minutes. Finally she could cry no more. The game was Dungeon Guy 3. She realized what she had done. He probably worked hard again. "I love that dumbass." Blushing she realized what she just said. She didn't mean it like that she thought, but she knew that she meant it exactly how she said it. It's like her bother she thought, she loved him like a brother. She thought trying to deny her feelings. Wiping the tears from her eyes she sat down the game and knew exactly what she needed to do. She grabbed the note and put it in her pocket. She went into her room. She looked at the box with glass covering it. BREAK GLASS IN CASE YOU NEED TO MAKE LIKE A TREE AND GET OUTTA HERE. She broke it with her hand and took the vest and the keys, leaving the glasses. Those were for another time she decided. She walked outside in the pouring rain and ran for the alley to the left of the apartment complex. She threw off the tarp that covered the DeLorean got in and tried to start it. She sat there trying to start it for about 10 minutes while shouting insults and curses at it. (The DeLorean actually had feelings and the insults are why it didn't start.) She got out of the DeLorean in a fuming rage and kicked it. She then walked over to the blue sedan. "I'm bringing you home." She said determined. At 2:32AM she started the car and headed for road 401.

Leo's POV  
>2:32AM<br>Leo had been walking along road 401 for 30 minutes sticking out his thumb towards Kingston. He had no plans to go to Montreal, he just decided to tell her that so she would think that that's way too far away to come and give him a daily beating. Actuality he thought that would be good if she did that, not the beating of course but being able to see her. He then shook his head, why did he keep thinking of her? He wondered. He had a crush on her when he was in middle school, but those feelings had pasted a long time ago. He knew that she would never feel the same for him. I mean he wasn't the best looking guy either , I mean she had a few other boyfriends and she never showed any interest towards him so he never said anything. It seemed to get a bit colder so he pulled the bandanna that he had on over his nose and pressed on walking back wards with his thumb out. Drowsiness began to slowly creep up on him but he knew that he needed to move so he pushed it aside and moved on. Just as he thought he would be walking the whole way a semi pulled up beside him on the shoulder. He got in the truck and was greeted by a rather older looking man with a long beard and an only slightly rounded belly. He looked at Leo and asked him. "Where you going son?" "Kingston" Leo replied with a grunt. "I'm going to Belleville so that's as far as I can take you." The driver said with a shrug. "That's fine." Leo replied. The driver started off again. Leo pulled out his back pack and grabbed a water bottle. He took a long drink and as he was putting it away he noticed something else he packed. It was a picture of him and Aeris that was taken about a year before. She looks cute in that picture he thought. He shook his head again to rid the thoughts. About that time the driver asked. "Girlfriend?" "No, just an old friend." He replied blushing a little. "You didn't look at the picture like you were friends." The driver replied. "Well that's what we are. Just friends, nothing more." He said somewhat stubbornly. "But do you just want to be friends?" The driver asked. Leo did not respond to that. About 10 minutes later Leo said. "I had to leave her." "She was my roommate, we knew each other for a long time." He said quietly. The driver asked. "Why did you haft to leave?" "I said some things and she got mad, which usually happens but this time she was royally pissed so I knew it was time for me to leave." He said shamefully. "Did she want you to leave?" The driver asked. "I don't know." Leo said. "But I think it is for the best."" Only time will tell." replied the driver with a shrug. "Do you mind if I sleep for a little bit?" Leo asked. "Go ahead. I will wake you when we arrive." The driver replied. Leo nodded off quickly, thinking of what the driver said.

End of Chap 2

**Authors note: After soon noticing that i make these chapters faster than i thought i would i'm taking off the once a week thing because i got this done only a few hours after the first one. (thank you XanderN) Comment please and i decided to finish this and then if someone wants to re make it they can once i'm done. Thx for support. PLEASE COMMENT IT MAKES A DIFFERENCE! (and yes i realize that The Perfect Gift was after The Comedian but lets just pretend okay?) **


	3. Chapter 3 Kingston

**Ok another chapter, just slip on some headphones and listen to some fitting music and read through my rough draft from two days ago and… wait… 515 WORDS? WITH PLOT HOLES! WHAT THE HELL! *File* *New***

Chapter 3: Kingston

Leo POV

It was 4:10 when they arrived at Belleville. Leo was shaken up from his slumber. "Hey, we're here." The truck driver said. "Do you have everything?" The driver asked. They were at a gas station. "Yes I do, thank you for the ride." Leo said thankfully. "Sure thing pal, safe travels." The driver said back as Leo got out of the truck and walked into the gas station. He relived himself then stalked up on food and drinks, and grabbed some coffee. "Man this tastes way better than the stuff at home!" he said excitedly. He waved one more time at the truck driver as he walked towards the road and began to stick his thumb out again. He finished his coffee and pulled up the bandana once again.

Driver POV

He took out the pump from his truck. "Gee I sure hope that kid gets to Kingston safely" he muttered. He began to climb into his truck when he noticed something in the passenger seat. It was a collar with a big blue bell. "Oh he left it here." He looked around for the gray cat but saw he was already gone. He looked down at the collar and then looked back up. He saw something that caught his eye. A pink cat that was filling up her car. She looked just like the cat in the picture with the gray cat. He decided to see if it was in fact the grey cat's old roommate that he spoke of. "I mean it's not like there's a lot of pink cats." He thought. He walked over to the pink cat.

Aeris POV

She looked at the gas meter, it was almost at E. "Damn!" She cursed aloud. She looked up at a sign that said that there was a gas station on the right in 5 miles. Well she could use a coffee she decided and drove into the gas station after 5 miles had passed. She pulled into one of the pumps. "God gas is going up again." She mumbled bitterly. She went inside the station and bought a coffee. She didn't have to worry about switching this with Leo she thought with a smile. Then remembered why she was on the road and sighed. She started filling up the gas tank, coffee in hand. Then she saw an older looking man approaching her, he was holding something. She kept one eye on him as he walked over. "Excuse me miss?" The man said. Aeris shifted her attention completely to him. "Yes?" She asked. "Would you happen to know whose collar this is?" He produced a blue collar with a big blue bell on it. "Oh my god…" Aeris said in a hushed whisper. "Where did you find this?" She said her voice full of wonder. "A grey cat left it in my truck." He pointed towards his semi. "I gave him a ride and he forgot this." "The reason I thought you might know is because he pulled out a picture of him and someone else." He said "A cat about the same height and pink." "Now I don't see many pink cats so I assumed that was you." He finished. "So you couldn't take him to Montreal I assume?" She asked. "He said nothing of Montreal but he did say he was going to Kingston." "When did he leave?" She asked. "About 20 minutes ago. Went down 401 with his thumb out." He said. "Thanks a lot." She said. She took the gas filler upper thingy out of the tank. She climbed into the car and opened the dash. There was that picture of them taken a year back. It was probably the only good picture that they had together. She looked at the collar, it was a bit dirty. Probably from the traveling. She pulled out her phone to check the time. She face palmed. She had her phone but did not think to call him? "Stupid, stupid, stupid." She mumbled to herself. She looked through her contacts list and found Leo's number. She called, no answer, called again, no answer. Then she decided to text him "Come home Leo." She stared at the screen for a second and hit send. Low battery then flashed across the screen after the text was sent. She wiped the tears out of her eyes and started the car. "Hitchhiking huh? " She said to herself. "We lets go get him before he gets picked up by some murderers or pot smoking hippies." (No offence to hippies.) She started up the car and drove out the gas station hoping to get to Leo before someone else does. She scanned the right side shoulder for any signs of the grey cat. She then saw a multicolored 1960's Volkswagen Vanagon van fly by with smoke coming out of the windows. "Awww shit… "She mumbled. She turned off the heater.

Leo's POV (Again)

It wasn't too far to Kingston he knew but that still didn't mean that he wanted to walk there. Cars were passing him paying absolutely no mind. Then he saw a multicolored 1960's Volkswagen Vanagon signal that it was pulling off onto the shoulder. "Oh joy. Hippies…" He said sarcastically but he knew they just might be his only ride to Kingston and he sure as hell did not want to walk. The guy in the passenger seat rolled down his window and said in a somewhat out of it voice. "You need a ride man?" Leo nodded. "Well come on in man!" The two back doors swung open and he was greeted by more hippies. The interior of the van was covered in nice cloth and consisted of seats that lined the sides of the van. There was carpet too. He knew was only an hour trip to Kingston but it was going to be a long ass hour. "Hey there fellow rode traveler." One of the men in the back said. "This is Joe." He points to a long hired man with a guitar. "That's Grent." He points at the driver. "Grent"? Leo said in a questioning voice. "Yes Grent." The van was silent for a second. "Yeah and that's Bill." He says breaking the silence. He points to a shirtless guy passed out in a corner. "The guy in shotgun is John." John looks back and waves in a circular fashion. "And I am," He flicked his long hair. "Fresh Breeze." "Leo laughed at this. "Fresh Breeze?" He said. "Yeah but you can call me Gary." He said, his spirits rather dampened by Leo's laughter. "And what is your name?" Gary asked the cat. "Uh." Leo thought for a second. "Dave." He replied. "Ok then Dave." Asked Gary. "What brings you to the great 401 this early in the morning?" "I'm uh…" Everyone except for the driver was staring at him waiting for him to say something. It even seemed like the guy that was asleep was staring at him. He thought of a quick lie. "My car broke down on my way to Kingston." "Bummer" Said Gary. Everyone agreed that that was a bummer except Bill who was passed out in the corner. "Uh is it ok if I get some sleep sleep till we get to Kingston?" Leo asked. Gary responded. "Yeah man whatever. I might drift away into dreamland myself man." Everyone agreed but Bill, still passed out in the corner.  
>"Uh… you do that, man." Leo said. He slumped himself in the open corner and closed his eyes but couldn't find sleep. He was too busy thinking about what's next, would he find a job, will he be able keep that job things like that. But more importantly to him, how would Aeris react? Would she be happy, sad or not care either way. He hoped she would be happy, that's why he left. He checked his phone 4:30AM. And wait… 2 missed calls and a text, from Aeris. He stared at the phone. Why did she try to contact me? He wondered. Did he make the wrong choice? He thought about it for a second and remembered what the truck driver said about this subject. "Only time will tell." They were from about thirty minutes ago when he was walking down the road he looked at the text. "Come home Leo." Tears came to his eyes. He looked around, everyone else had fallen to sleep and he was the only one still awake. He stared at the text than he slid out the keyboard then hesitated. Should he text her? He thought about it, and did. He looked out the window to see Kingston approaching in the distance.<p>

Aeris POV (again)

She was thirty minutes to Kingston, but she hoped to find him before then. It's a lot easier to find someone hitchhiking than in the middle of a good sized city. It was just then that she received a text. She looked at her pink phone. It was from Leo. She looked at the text. "I can't." she started texting back "Leo I'm srry I overreacted and didn't mean to yell at u! Plz come home it won't be the same without you." Just as she was about to hit send, her phone died. She threw the phone into the passenger seat. There were tears rolling down her cheeks now. She quickly wiped them off and sped up a little. She was getting pretty tired and even more stressed. Kingston 20 miles a sign said. She scanned the shoulder like a hawk, but she already knew he was in Kingston by now.

Leos POV

When they arrived in Kingston, it was 5:23AM Leo asked to be dropped off at a cheap hotel. The driver hippie complied and dropped him off at holiday inn. He said goodbye and thanks and walked into the holiday inn and asked for one of their cheapest rooms for one night. He paid 91$ at the counter and went to his room. Room 213 it was a relatively small room with an older TV on a table and a small bathroom with just a shower. He laid his bag down next to the bed and flopped onto the bed. He reached for his neck to take off his collar. It wasn't there, he looked through his bag and in his pockets, not there. He looked all around the room, nowhere. It was gone he thought sadly. He turned on the TV, laid down on the bed, pulled out some pop-tarts and tried not to think about it.

Aeris POV

She arrived in Kingston twenty minutes later at 5:37AM. The first thing she did was find a hotel. She saw a holiday inn and pulled into the parking lot. She asked for a cheaper room and got the last one. She paid 91$ and went to her room, it was room 214. She didn't even take the time to look around, she just fell into the bed and tried to go to sleep as the jackass in the next room laughed his ass off. And clutched in her hand as she fell asleep was Leo's collar.

End of Chapter 3

**Authors note: God that chapter took forever. I had three ideas for this chapter and wrote three rough drafts based off the first one. Finally decided to finish this idea. If you curious about the other two ideas they were: 1. Aeris picks up a hitchhiker that turned out to be Leo and then as she realized this got into a car wreck. =( 2: Aeris picks up a hitch hiker that turns out to be Leo and she never realizes this until he gets out of the car and leaves his collar. I thought Leo getting picked up by hippies and Aeris getting tipped off by the driver where Leo was really going was the best choice. This took more time than first two though. By the way Kingston and Belleville are real towns and 401 is a real road. However 401 does not directly go through Kingston but it is close enough for me to add in a little geographical fiction. The amount of time passed is pretty accurate as well but it may not be spot on. PLEASE COMMENT! I LOOK AT EVERY ONE OF THEM AND TAKE ALL IN TO CONSIDERATION!**

**Thanks~Foot Pains**

**P.S. Don't text and drive like Aeris did. It's not good for your health.  
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	4. Chapter 4 Is that who i think it is?

Chapter 4-Is that who I think it is?

Leo POV

Leo woke up slowly from the bed. He had a small bag of chips in his hands and a half eaten pop-tart next to him. He stretched out and looked at the clock. 3:43PM. He decided it was time to get up. He climbed out of bed, stretched again and then turned off the TV that was still on and cleaned up the mess he'd made. When he got finished he went into the bathroom and started the shower. He then went inside and ran the water through his hair. "I needed this." he thought rubbing his shoulders where he had been carrying his backpack. He now looked less like a homeless person. He dug through his bag and found a fresh shirt and pants. He picked up the worn and dirty clothes and put them in a plastic shopping bag then put them on the bed. He then picked up his backpack and walked out of the room. He closed the door and locked it then walked to the elevator and hit the down button. He waited about a thirty seconds then it came up and he got on. When the elevator reached the ground floor he walked out of the hotel and found himself at Queen Street. He walked down the street looking around at the various stores and shops. About halfway down the street he found a café and went inside. It was a decent looking café. He sat down at a stool and ordered a muffin. He decided that the muffin was quite good and he tipped. He then went outside and bought the daily paper. He then wandered around a bit more looking at everything. This was his new home so he should get used to how it looks he decided. He continued to look for a game store. If he found one he would try and get a job there. If he couldn't get a job there it might be good to know where that was anyways. "Man what I'd pay to play some Xbox or PS3 or something…" Leo thought to himself. He walked all through downtown, looking at restaurant's, theater's, café's and well, just about everything. He went in about every gift shop just looking at little trinkets and postcards but he found no game store. This saddened him a bit. He wandered his way into the last gift shop he found and looked around inside of it. He found a collar that was similar to his old one, but there was no bell. He sighed and walked out. The last place that he hasn't been was the lake side. It was now 6:02 and the sun was beginning to set. He walked down to the lakeside and stared at the horizon. He put his hands on the railing and looked out on at the great Ontario. Then he heard a voice from behind. "Excuse me?" The voice said. "Have you seen this cat?" He turned around to see a picture of himself. His Jaw dropped behind the bandana and his eyes got extremely wide. Every muscle in his body wanted to say that it was him. He stared at the picture in awe for a second. "Tha-uh-No." He finally said. The cat holding it was Pink, he had no doubts whatsoever about who it was. "_Jesus its Aeris…"_ He thought awed.

Aeris POV

"Good morning sleepy head." Leo said with a smile. "Good morning." She said smiling back slowly getting out of the bed. "I made breakfast." He said. "Let me guess, cereal?" She asked. "Nope. Eggs and toast, and bacon." He replied. "Wow I must say I'm impressed." She said back to him. "Come on before they get cold." He said walking out of the room. She got up and looked out of the window, the sun was about halfway up on the Saturday morning and not a cloud in the sky. She walked down the hallway following a wonderful smell. She walked into the kitchen too see Leo putting a plate on the table. She walked over to the table and sat down. Then Leo sat down and they began eating she forked down the egg and bacon very quickly then eat the toast. She was surprisingly hungry. "So what did you think?" Leo asked. "Well let's just say you are cooking every morning now." He smiled. "Glad you like it!" "Now come on let's play some Xbox." Leo said. Aeris smiled and began their day. They played for almost the whole day. Talking, playing video games, snacking, relaxing really. And at the end of the day while watching the Matrix she leaned her head on Leo shoulder and slowly began to fall asleep. But just before she could fall asleep, she woke up staring at the wall of the small hotel room. She was hugging a pillow. She let go of the pillow and sat at the foot of the bed thinking of the dream. She really did love him, even if he would probably never cook at all or be that mature she still loved him. The dream made her realize that. That brought both happiness and sadness into her heart. She got up and looked at the clock, 4:38PM. She got up, grabbed some money and left right away. She hit the down button on the elevator and the doors opened instantly and she got in. She reached the lowest floor and walked out the hotel. She walked around downtown looking everywhere asking shop owners if they had seen him. She went inside a gift shop near the lakeside. This was her last shot at gift shops, she hoped someone had seen him here. She walked up the cat behind the counter. "Have you seen this cat?" She asked holding up a picture of Leo. The guy looked at it for a second, narrowed his eyes then looked at her and said. "Yeah he was in here about 5 minutes ago looking at a collar then he left towards the lakeside." She quickly responded with a thank you then headed for the lakeside. The sun was beginning to set. She saw one lone cat leaning over on some railing looking out at the Ontario. She walked over to him and said "Excuse me? Have you seen this cat?" The cat turned around and she saw that he had a bandana on over his face. It was a little cold but too bad so she was a little curious as to why he had a bandana on. When he saw the picture his eyes got big, very big. Then he replied sounding somewhat stunned. "Tha-uh-No." She eyed him suspiciously, he looked familiar. "Are you sure?" she asked. "Yeah I haven't seen him." He replied. "Ok then, thanks." She said hesitantly and walked off thinking about the cat. "_You know…" _She thought. "_Those clothes looked like Leo's, and those big green eyes…"._ She stopped walking "_Could it be…"_ She turned around to see that he was no longer by the railing. She looked around. He was gone. "Fuck!" She yelled aloud. And started back for her hotel. It was too late to effectively search now. _I hope he has somewhere to stay for tonight but_ t_omorrow I will find him, and when I do _he_ is coming home. Even if I haft to tie him up and drag him home._ She arrived at the hotel at around 7:30 with some food. She went up to her room and ate the food then tried to sleep. Sleep never came.

Leo POV

_Man that was Aeris. Kinda hard to believe she was looking for me. Was this a good idea? Should I have done this? Maybe the truck driver was right. Or maybe Aeris is wrong and it will be a lot better without me _His mind raced and he was uncertain of his decisions. He continued the walk to the hotel. He then thought about that tomorrow he wasn't going to be able to be in the hotel. He was worried about this very deeply. He decided that he could get a job and just find an apartment tomorrow. When he finally arrived at the hotel he saw the blue sedan. "Oh my god…" He said awed. They were at the same hotel. He then saw her walking back towards the hotel with food. She was heading towards the entrance that he was about to go in. He let her go in first then he entered, she was waiting on the elevator. He waited in a dark corner for her to get on and go up. When the elevator reached the bottom floor she got in and then the doors shut again. He emerged from his corner sighing. That was going to be tough while Aeris is here. He called the elevator back and once it arrived got on and went into his room. He flopped down on the bed and thought things through while staring at the celling. He didn't sleep that night.

**GOD FINALLY DONE! Sorry that it's been a little sense the last update. I've been very busy and had a hard time trying to find time to write. It is actually 5:00 in the morning right now and I am extremely tired but I'm glad I finally got this done. Like chapter 3 this one had multiple endings which means I spent about 2 hours writing rough drafts and about 1 and a half on the real deal. Well thx for support and leave comment or review is I guess what they call it on here. (I'm used to YouTube.) **

**Oh and got another corn on my foot. Hooray for more pain.**

**Thx a ton!~ Footpains **


	5. Chapter 5 Riverside Answers

**DAMN it has been a long time since I updated. Sorry about that it was been a busy week and I'm pretty tired but hopefully I can get the next one done quicker than this one. **

**Hey, before we start I want to say that JSossamon has noticed something that has bugged me for a while. I have a hard time writing from the perspective of the actual character, those POV's are more like the narrator following that specific character in a third person view rather than all of them. I have been annoyed with this for a while but have never done anything about it and I still won't for this story but in others that I may make I will try and write from the actual perspective of the character. Although I will correct that it is not a POV. Now for your first comment. While that is true just read this chapter. (This also shows me that I did a poor job of explaining the reasons why Leo left.) This chapter may help clear that up a little. Now let's began.**

**Chapter 5-Riverside Answers**

**Leo 3rd Person**

Leo looked at the clock. 6:23AM. He had been laying there for a long time. He was thinking about Aeris, well not exactly her, just why she was here and if he had made the right choice running away. After laying there and pondering this thought for hours he still hadn't come up with an answer. _She was here… looking for me… Have I made the right choice? Should I go home? _Thoughts like that bounced through his mind all night. "_Well I should get a move on and try and find a job." _He thought. He started packing all of his stuff into his backpack and prepared to leave. He heard someone yelling in the next room. "Come on, at 6:30?" He mumbled to himself. He continued packing and thought about his plans here. He needed to find a job pretty quickly so he could start a life here. When he and Aeris got out of high school they pooled their money and bought the apartment. She dropped out of college and he never went. This was the first time in his life that he was on his own. He never had to take anything seriously until now. It's like as soon as he left he had to flip on a maturity switch. He sighed and went to the main lobby to check out. He gave back his key and left the building. He saw the sedan one more time and pulled out a sticky note and wrote something on it and stuck it under the windshield wiper and left. That would answer his question. Then he went to go find a job. He went all around the city asking for jobs. He started asking store and café owners if they had a job for him, then fast food places. Nothing, no open jobs at all. He even begged to some of the store owners. But they all said that business was tough as it was and they didn't need any more employees. He sighed and looked at the time 7:40PM. He began walking towards the lakeside. His question needed to be answered.

**Aeris 3rd Person **

Aeris had been staring at the clock for now three hours. It is now 6:27am. Thoughts had been racing through her mind. She thought about how Leo ran away. He did not want to be found, this much was clear. _Maybe he left because of years of insults and beating. Well the note made it seem like he was leaving because he didn't want to cause me anymore trouble._ "GOD, GIVE ME AN ANSWER!" She just yelled very loudly at 6:30 in the morning. She decided to get up now and take a shower. The warm water was wonderful and relaxing. It almost seemed to release the stress of the whole situation she was in. But as soon as she got out she remembered exactly what was going on and what she needed to do and the stress fell back on her shoulders. She grabbed the keys to the car and the key to the room. She had most of the stuff she brought was in the car although she didn't bring much, she did bring the money Leo left her. She went down to the lobby and gave back the key. She pulled out her phone, 6:47am. Ok time to search, this time she was not sure where to check but she just kinda walked around the street asking people if they had seen him. Most said no, one guy said he might have seen him entering a café yesterday but had no idea where he was now. She tried texting him once but he never responded, a call later answered her question when it went straight to voice mail. His phone was either dead or off. She also noticed earlier that the extra charger was in the car so he couldn't charge his phone unless he got a new charger. The next thing she thought was. _"Why in the hell was the second charger in the car? You couldn't charge it in the car, we didn't have special car charger I mean why was it in there?_" She shrugged it off and walked on. She stuck her hands in her pockets and walked back towards the hotel parking lot to get the car. She pulled out her cell phone to try and call him one more time. As soon as she put the phone up to her ear she heard Leo's voice mail. "Hey it's Leo, I was probably too busy pwning some noob to notice that my phone had rang, soooooo leave a message." She ended the call and finished her walk to the parking lot once there she got in the car. She checked the time on the dash,7:56pm. She had dedicated her whole day trying to find Leo. She was very tired. It was when she looked up that she noticed a piece of yellow paper stuck under the windshield wiper. "What the hell…" She mumbled and got out and removed it. She then looked at it, it read. _Aeris, riverside 8:00pm._ Her mind raced. "_It might be Leo or maybe someone who saw him but how would they know her me? No it had to be Leo." _She quickly got in the car and started it, she had little time. She sped out of the parking lot and quickly moved down the road. She was actually getting most of the lights but there wasn't too much traffic either so she was moving fast. She looked at the time, 7:59. "Shit,Shit,SHIT!" She yelled at her steering wheel. She was close, the lakeside wasn't far but she just got a red light. The light turned green and she sped off and in less than a minute was at the lakeside. She got out and looked around. She saw him, he was leaning on the railing staring out at lake. She began walking over to him.

**Both (More Leo) 3rd Person **

He arrived at 7:55. It was a short walk and he cover ground pretty quickly at night since there weren't many people out now. He leaned a bit over the raining staring out at the lake. _"Should have brought the DS." _He thought to himself. He had bought a watch at one of the gift shops since his phone died. He looked at his watch,8:00pm. He looked around, no one around. He turned back around and stared at the sea. "_Okay Aeris you have 5 more minutes to-" _His thoughts where interrupted by a sharp poke in the back. He turned around to see Aeris. "Aeris?" "Leo?" They both stared at each other. Then hugged each other. "God I'm sorry Leo. I didn't mean to yell at you like that. I didn't want you to leave I'm just sorry." "No you had every right to yell at me I was being an asshole and I insulted your mother on the day she died. Look I left because I didn't want to cause you any more trouble." Tears were rolling down both of their faces. They then remembered that they were holding each other and let go quickly, both blushing. They both wiped the tears from there eyes. "Well it's a three hour drive to the apartment and I didn't sleep at all last night so do you want to just get a hotel room?" Leo asked. "Yeah I'm all for that I didn't sleep at all either." They walked over to the car. Leo got in the passenger and Aeris got in the drivers seat. "I'm glad you came" Leo said. "I'm glad i did too."

**Aeris 3rd Person **

"Hey that's where my charger went!" Leo exclaimed as he held it. Aeris rolled her eyes and started the car. She drove up the street to the hotel that she stayed at last night. She pulled into the parking lot. "Well we can stay here a night." "Sounds good. " Replied Leo. They got out and walked up the person behind the counter. It was a different person than the last time she was here. _Different shifts._ She thought. " Can we have the cheapest room you have for one night?" Aeris asked. "Yeah, you got lucky last room." The guy behind the desk said. She paid there and took the key and they went to their room. "That's funny it's the same room I had." Aeris said. "You're kidding" Leo said. "This was the room right next to mine." "Really?" Aeris said. Leo nodded. "So you were in the same hotel as me this whole time?" "I guess." Leo shrugged. "God damn it." Aeris mumbled slightly pissed. They opened the door and sat their stuff down. Then they noticed something, there was only one big bed. "Um I can sleep on the ground if you want." Leo suggested. "No it's not that big of a deal just stay on your side." Aeris said. "Uh ok then." Leo said and went into the bathroom to change. "_Well this might be a bit awkward but whatever it not that big of a deal. It's not like we're going to have sex or anything." _ She thought. She took off her jacket and put on some pajama pants she found in the back of the car then got into the bed. She herd Leo whistling as he peed. She chuckled a bit at this. He then came out and sat something on the nightstand. She looked at what he had sat down. It was a watch. "Is that a watch?" she asked. "Yeah, why?" "You never wear watches." "Phone died." He said and got in the bed. "Uh well goodnight." He said. "Night." She said back. He turned off the light.

"Damn…" Aeris mumbled to herself in the middle of the night. She was woke up by her need to piss. She was very warm and comfortable and did not want to get up. She wondered what was providing this warmth. She opened her eyes and saw a pair of arms around her. It was Leo's, he must have done this In his sleep. Actually he was more like cuddling with her. Surprisingly she did not do anything about this. She actually liked this, she was warm and comfortable and safe like nothing could ever harm her.\. She very quickly fell asleep again, forgetting completely about her need to pee.

**Awww how cute. Next chapter won't take a week next time. Write a review please, it helps a ton and thx for the support. ~**_**FootPains**_


	6. Chapter 6 Curious Happenings

**Heh, I accidently named the word document goddbye chapter 6. FAIL**

**Oh and just in case you didn't catch on, anything **_**Italicized **_**is usually thoughts.**

**Chapter 6- Curious Happenings**

**Leo 3rd Person**

Leo awoke slowly with his first thoughts being on the fact that he was holding something. Something soft and warm and furry, he didn't want to let go of it but was also curious about what it was. He opened his eyes. "_OH SHIT." _He was holding Aeris, her head was under his chin and his hands were across her waist. _"God I'm in for a beating now."_ _"In all of the years I've lived with Aeris I don't think I've ever been this close to her."_ But then he noticed something interesting. When he looked at down at her face she was softly smiling in her sleep. Not only that but she was holding his hands, preventing him from moving them. "_You know, even though I know I'm going to get a beating, I really like this." _He was warm and comfortable but more importantly to him, he was practically cuddling with Aeris. He got a quick glance at the clock, 6:46am. He sun was beginning to rise. He looked at Aeris again as she slept, felt kinda stalkerish but he couldn't get over how good she looked. Of course he would never say anything about this but he still thought it. Her big blue eyes, her nicely shaped body, her pink and white fur, that's what he liked the most, she was different. He always liked that about her, she was different than most girls in many ways. First of all she was pink, but she was different personality wise too. He could relate to her in many ways. Their interests were very similar (Video Games). "_Do I love her?" _He pondered this thought, and answered it pretty quickly, yes he did. He loved her more than anything else in his life. Just being around her made him a bit happier on the inside. This has been true ever since he was a kid and he first met her. He's felt this growing love for a long time but just tried to deny it and keep it on the inside, in the very back if his mind. He didn't love her for her looks, "_although they sure helped",_ he loved her because of who she was, a gamer and a friend. A damn good friend to put up with him this long and then come and find me when I left. "_Wait… does she love me? That would explain all of this."_ These thoughts began to bounce around his head. "_She is holding my hands, but she's sleeping. She is smiling though, but still asleep. She chased after me after I left…" _ He pondered his thoughts until he Aeris start to wake. "_Oh boy here it comes." _He cracked his eyes and was able to see a little. She was awake but not moving, just lying there. Then she rubbed one of Leo's hands and snuggled up closer to him_ "Ok I'm dreaming, no doubt about it. As much as I want to believe it's true, it's not this would never happen. Or would it…" _She then peeled back on of Leo's arms from her, got up, and went to the bathroom. She came out 2 minutes later and got back into bed. Then she did something totally unexpected, she rolled over and snuggled into his chest and fell asleep. At this point he didn't care if he was dreaming, she was snuggling into his chest. Then she fell back asleep again, softly smiling. Leo was beginning to fall asleep again when he heard Aeris whisper something he couldn't quite pick up.

**Aeris 3rd Person**

Aeris woke up nice and slow, feeling the same feeling she felt when she woke up in the middle of the night, the need to pee and comfort. But she didn't want to move, she rubbed one of the hands she was holding on to and snuggled up a little closer to Leo. She was nice and warm against his fur. She looked over at Leo, he was still asleep._ "Thank god. It was going to be pretty awkward to wake up like this i cant imagine how weird it would be if he saw that."_ Then she looked at the clock. "_Oh it's 6:50. I'll just pee then go back to sleep." _She hurried into the bathroom almost pissing herself and did her business, then got back in bed and snuggled into Leo's chest. He was asleep so she didn't worry about him noticing. She now was at the peak of her happiness and comfort. She began to ponder a thought she had before she fell asleep. Leo and her feeling's for him, she didn't want to be friends anymore. It took him leaving to realized that she loved him, that's why she put up with him, that's why she chased after him, that's why she was here now. "I love you Leo." She whispered. She saw one thing that surprised her somewhat just before she shut her eyes. Leo was smiling now. She was too tired to think about it though and fell asleep in Leo's arms.

Aeris began to wake up an hour later. She slowly opened up her eyes and found herself staring into to the eyes of Leo. "Uh hello." Aeris said slowly. "Hi." Leo said back. "Is there a reason your staring me down?" Aeris asked. "Well if you haven't noticed you're kinda cuddling with me." Aeris blushed as she remembered the position they were in. "Yes I am." She sat up and Leo sat up next to her. "You want to explain that?" Leo asked. "Were you attracted to my impossibly muscular frame?" Leo asked teasingly flexing his arms. She elbowed him in the gut. "I don't know how it happened but it did ok. Let's just pretend that it never happened." Aeris replied. "Ok then, but I call shower first!" Leo jumped up and started for the bathroom. "Fuck you!" Aeris shouted back and jumped up from the bed. It was a close finish but Aeris was on the side of the bed that was closer to the bathroom and got in there first. "Victorious as usual!" Aeris said through the bathroom door. "Yeah, Yeah…" Leo said back. Aeris turned on the water and waited for it to get warm. She stepped in and began thinking about last night. How good she felt and how she hadn't slept that well in a long time. Then she remembered something else, his collar. It was in the car, she would give it to him later. She turned off the water and got out of the shower. She put on some clothes and brushed her hair. She opened the door, to see Leo leaning up against the doorway. "My turn."

**Leo 3rd Person**

He went inside the bathroom and started the water. He felt somewhat hurt. She lied to him, this hit him hard. She never lied to him no matter what. But I guess this was different but still it hurt. "_What was that all about last night? Was she just really tired and cold or did it mean something?" _he was so lost in thought he just stood there in the shower and didn't really do anything but soak up the water. Then the water started turning cold and he turned off the shower and walked out. He threw on a shirt and put on his pants. When he walked out of the bathroom he saw Aeris standing by the bed with all everything packed up. "Ready to go?" Aeris asked. "Yeah." Leo responded somewhat quietly. Aeris looked at him with a concerned face after he said that. "You alright?" Aeris asked. "Yeah, I'm fine. Let's go." Leo said. He was too busy thinking of what happened last night. Trying to think things through, trying to wrap his head around all the stuff that happened here recently. It has just all gone by so fast, these last two days. "You want to drive?" His thoughts were interrupted by Aeris's question. "Sure." He said somewhat distracted. Aeris stopped in the hallway and looked at him. "Are you alright? You seem, off…" Aeris had a concerned face. "Yeah I'm just thinking..." He responded. "About what happened this morning?" Aeris asked. "About the past two days Aeris. It's just been fast and confusing." "Okay, well let's get checked out of here and then we can talk about it." "_Talk about it? What are you leading on to Aeris?" _They checked out and left towards the car. Just as Leo was about to get in the car Aeris stepped in front of the door. "Now tell me about what happened the last few days." "Starting from where?" "The very beginning leaving the apartment." And so he did, he told of packing up all of his stuff at 1 in the morning, he talked of the nice truck driver the driver and about the conversations they had. He talked of the hippies. He told her of finding out that she was here and of trying to avoid her. She stood and listened intently. "There's only a few things I don't know Aeris. Why did you come after me? How did you know I was coming here? Why have you put up with me for so long!" He was almost yelling now. "Why did you come after me Aeris! I'm a dumbass and a fuck around and an all-around annoyance! And this morning? I was awake at 6:50!" Aeris's eyes got bigger after he said that. "Yeah, that thing this morning, I saw that! I dont know what the fuck you said, but you cuddled with me! What the hell is going on Aeris!" He looked at her, she was a bit stunned. He had never yelled at her before. He felt guilt. "Look I'm sorry that I yelled, it's just that I'm trying to figure this out." He scratched the back of his head "You've got me confused Aeris." And the reason why i trying to figure all of this out, is well..." He mustered all of the strength in his inner-being. "I love you." They both said it in unison. Leo's eyes were as big as the moon. Then Aeris answered his question. "Leo I love you that's why. I knew it form the start. I love you Leo, that's why I tolerated you, that's why I chased after you, that's why I'm here now. Because I love you with all of my heart. Leo stared into her blue eyes. "You have no idea how long I've waited for you to say that." He said with tears in his eyes. Then they both advanced and passionately kissed. As they did Aeris reached across his neck and put something on. When they released for air he looked down. "My collar!" He exclaimed. "You found it!" "The driver of the truck you rode on gave me this. He said you showed him a picture of us and recognized me from that. He also told me where you were actually headed Leo. But that doesn't matter now, what matters is that were together and we are going home." Leo nodded back and they both got in the car and began the 3 hour drive back to Toronto.

**R.I.P. DAN WHELDON  
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**WELL, now that we have our feelings out lets move on. 4 day weekend! YAY! this means that there will be another update this week and possibly 2. (No promises on 2)**

**God i'm tired. got up at 5:20am to proofread this and add in minor changes. Hope you like this chapter. **

**P.S. If you see any mistakes made in the please tell me, you're doing me a service. **


	7. Chapter 7 Car Stories

**God now I can finally settle down and write. It's been a pretty busy here lately and I finally got ahold of Gears of War 3 so I've been playing that in my downtime (awesome game!). But now it is time to write. Longer wait means longer chapter, or my way of saying sorry. Oh and thanks to the 6 people who reviewed and the 3 anonymous reviewers. Enjoy.**

**Chapter 7- Car Stories **

**General 3rd Person **

Leo set the cruise control at 70 MPH, and released his foot from the petal.

"_Smooth sailing from here." _Leo though with a smile.

They were on highway 401 now and could take the road strait back to looked over at Aeris and smiled, she returned the smile.

"It's been some hell of a weekend, huh?" Leo said.

"Yeah… but at least it was worth it." Aeris replied smiling.

"Yeah, I guess it was." Leo said.

They both sat in a short silence thinking of what happened earlier. Sharing their feelings, and the kiss… They both had waited quite a while for that kiss. Aeris broke this short silence with a question.

"Leo how can you love me after all the beatings and abuse I put you through?"

"_Can't say I didn't see that coming…" _Leo thought.

Leo was not too surprised by this question. He was ready for it, he knew the answer long before she had asked. Then he smiled, and told her.

"I had a crush on you far before you started beating me. I always thought you were beautiful, and you still are. But it really began to grow into something more than a crush when we moved in together. I was around you more, I got to learn more about you, who you really were. I guess there something about girls with a backbone. But what really pushed me through the last 2 years with you was that you apologized for the beatings and future beatings and I forgave you."

Aeris was confused. "I apologized?" "Yep." He continued.

"For a while I thought that you did it with no remorse or guilt. You always hit me through high school so I was used to it and you never showed signs of caring. But one day you hurt me pretty bad. Remember just after we moved in and you hit me in the head with your laptop?

Aeris recalled this memory with vivid detail…

**2 years earlier about 3 weeks after they had moved in together**

**General POV**

Leo walks down the hall to see that Aeris's door was opened.

"_Let's see what Aeris is up too…" _He thought with an evil grin.

He peaked his head in the room and saw that Aeris was typing on her laptop. He decided to get a closer look. He tiptoed across the room and ducked down next to Aeris. He then popped his head and stared at the computer. He nearly laughed at what Aeris was writing. It was a Final Fantasy fanfiction that was twisted in the sense that Auron and Tidus were gay for each other. He stood up and said the sentence that she had just finished writing. "Tidus looks deeply into Auron's eyes and whispers…" Aeris stopped typing instantly, her eyes widened, her tail stood up on end and her ears drooped. "You know I don't quite remember that part of the game. Leo said soaking in the moment. Aeris quickly shut her laptop and picked it up. "OUT!" She yelled, clinching the laptop and pointing at the door. Leo continued to pester her. "Do you think Square-Enix would approve of that sort of-." He was cut off by Aeris yelling "OUT!" one last time and then getting hit in the head by her laptop. There was a loud crunching noise as the laptop hit his head. He fell down hard, bleeding all over the floor. Aeris ran over and grabbed her laptop. "My fanfic!" She cried with tears in her eyes. She then looked down to see a bleeding Leo mumble "Pink goo leaking… head in… floor now taste salty." And then he passed out.

"Oh shit Leo!" Aeris yelled. She bent over, dropping the laptop and looked at the wound. There was blood gushing out of the right side of his head. She quickly grabbed one of her shirts and wrapped it around his head. She then called 911 saying that her roommate had fallen over. An ambulance came and got the unconscious Leo from the apartment. Aeris followed the ambulance in the car and sat in the waiting room for 3 hours. She sat, staring at the ground, not moving her head from that spot until she saw a pair of feet appear before her. She looked up to see who the feet belonged to. It was the doctor, he said that Leo would make a full recovery but will be in bed for a couple more days. He explained that he had got 14 stiches in his head. He then asked if she wanted to see him. She nodded and went to see him. He was asleep in the bed, his head was no longer bloody, and the wound had been stitched up. He looked more like Leo now. She sat down in a chair next to the bed. She placed her hand on his. "Leo I know you can't hear me but… I'm sorry." She said quietly. "I didn't mean to hurt you this badly and I did this. I put you through this and I promise never to do it again." She said, tears now rolling down her cheeks. "I'm sorry for any beatings in the past and I'm sorry for any in the future. But no matter how much I hit you I will never leave your side Leo. You're all I got and I hit you with a computer. What kind of friend am i? Please… Please forgive me Leo." She kissed his forehead and sat back down in the chair. There she slept until morning.

She was woken up by a nurse at 8:30am, who checked on Leo. During this check he woke up and appeared to be fine. After the nurse left Leo looked over at Aeris. "You're here." Aeris started tearing up. "Yes I am." He smiled at her. "Thanks." She looked at him puzzled. "For what?" She asked. "For being here and taking care of me." He replied still smiling. "Well I've been here, the nurses are the ones taking care of you." Aeris admitted. "Well thanks for being here." He said still smiling. "Do you know why your here?" She asked barely able to hold back her tears. "You hit me with a laptop." He said touching the side of his head. "Did I get stiches?" He asked with excitement. "Yes you did." Aeris replied. "Awesome! I feel like a badass now!" He said excitedly. She chuckled a little. "You should probably get some rest." She said. "Yeah, you're probably right." He admitted and laid back down and went to sleep. She stayed with him for the rest of the morning until a nurse came in and said that she should go home and rest then come back tomorrow. Leo, now awake, agreed with the nurse and Aeris went home. As she walked out she could faintly hear Leo asking the nurse if he really had stiches.

She did not do anything for the rest of the day. She tried to play some Final Fantasy but just couldn't get herself to do it. She did not sleep that well that night. Her thoughts were on what she had done and how much she regretted it. She finally settled into an uneasy sleep at 2:43am. She slept until 6:35am. She was in fact, woke up by a call by the hospital saying that Leo was cleared to go home. She got up drowsy and grumpy and grabbed some fresh cloths for him. She then drove over to the hospital and was sent to his room. He was still in his hospital robe thingy when she arrived. "Ahh fresh clothes." He said coming out of the bathroom. "Now can we go home? Hospitals give me the creeps." Leo said a bit shaken up. He looked like he didn't sleep well last night either. "Yeah we can go home now Leo."

The drive home from the hospital was quiet for a while until Aeris finally spoke up. "I'm sorry Leo." She said in a sad tone. "It's ok Aeris, I kinda deserved that." He replied "So you forgive me? Just like that?" She said somewhat awed. "Well yeah Aeris you're my only friend why wouldn't I forgive you?" He replied. "Well because I kinda sent you to the hospital… By hitting you with a computer." She said "Eh, forgive and forget right?" He said with a shrug. She looked over and smiled at him. "Thanks Leo." She said. "For what?" he asked puzzled. She sighed. "Never mind." She said, and they drove the rest of the way talking about the awesome stiches Leo got.

**Back to current time**

**General POV**

"Yes I remember…" she said quietly

"I was awake that night after I got the stiches." Leo said

Aeris's eyes widened, and she began to tear up.

"Y-you heard that?" She asked with a shaky voice.

"Yes I did, and I forgave you Aeris." He said smiling

"That was the day I started loving you Aeris, because I knew I had someone who cared for me through the thin and thick. You were a true friend, but on the inside I now craved to be more than friends. It was always just a dream to me though. I tried to deny my love for you and the dream and push it aside but now it's actually happened…" Leo finished.

"You were awake?" Aeris asked still trying to soak this all in.

"Yes I was." Leo said.

"How were you awake!" She asked bewildered.

"I woke up when you walked in but I decided to keep my eyes closed to see what you said and did. Leo responded.

"So you sat there motionless, just to see what I did?" Aeris asked in mild frustration.

"Yeah pretty much, glad I did it too." He responded.

"Yeah so am I." Aeris admitted.

"Anyways how did you fall in love with an idiot like me?" Leo asked

Aeris thought about this, she went back to when they kids. He was always there for her, always by her side, never leaving her for someone or something else. He would fight for her no matter what. She recalled the countless times he'd kicked snake's ass over something he did to her.

"Well our stories are similar in the fact that I've had a crush on you for a while." She said.

"But I guess my love for you really started last. You remember don't you?"

Leo started to remember the last Christmas and the days before it…

**A little less than a year earlier**

**General POV**

Leo and Aeris are out on this December day to get a game at the local game store. When they entered it was pretty empty but it was late. Leo immediately went for the demo of guitar hero, ehile Aeris looked around to see what games she wanted. She had been looking for a while now still trying to find the game she wanted. _"Ah there it is!" _She reached up and grabbed the game and stared at it in awe. She then looked back up with a blank face. _"Wait a minute…" _She thought. She tucked the game under her arm and dug through her pocket. She got ahold of it and pulled it out. She then opened the wallet, a moth flew out of the completely empty pocket. She then put her wallet away and stared at the game in anger. "_Damn game prices…" _She thought as she put the game back where it belongs. Just before she walked away she looked at the game hesitantly. Then with her head hanging walked out of the store and waited for Leo to finish. Leo then popped out his head form a nearby aisle and walked over to where Aeris was browsing. He looked up and down the rack, trying to find the game Aeris was holding. "_There it is!" _He thought once he found the game she was holding. He looked back and smiled. They both went home and slept, Aeris disappointed, Leo with a smile.

The next morning Leo woke up very early ate some toast, and went off to go see Donkey Kong. Mr. Kong gave him a job of shoveling his crap(as in feces). Once this job had been done he went and got a job as a paper boy. After a few hours of getting chased down by a lawn mower he completed the job. He then took a visit to the mushroom kingdom and smashed some blocks. Once this was done he was holding a wad of cold, hard, ciggy smoking cash. He then took this and bought the game. When he got home he went into Aeris room and placed the gift under her lamp. He then walked back out and sat down on the sofa, slumped over on his side, shut his eyes, and went to sleep.

Aeris got home a short while later and found a dark apartment with a sleeping Leo. She looked at him in curiosity. _"He never goes to sleep this early…" _She walked down the hall to her room and looked back one last time as she entered her room. When she flicked on the light she was surprised to see a gift under her lamp. She walked over and grabbed it. She looked at the tag. "From Leo" it read with a little paw after Leo's name. She ripped off the gift wrapping and looked at the game, Dungeon Guy 2. She stared at the case in disappointment. _"He got the wrong game."_ Was her first thought. Then she thought again. _"He's asleep because he was probably working all day to get the money for his…" _Her look of disappointment soon faded away, replaced by a caring smile. _"He worked hard to make me happy, even though I beat him and insult him." _At that point it didn't matter to her that he got the wrong game. She wrote a note on a piece of paper then went over to Leo and stuck it on him, then kissed him on the forehead. She then went into the next room and played the game until 2:30 in the morning. It was a very good game…

Leo woke up the next morning in the sofa. He slowly got up and saw that he had drooled all over his shirt. "Damn it to hell, hey what's this?" He mumbled to himself as he saw the note attached to himself. He pulled the note off of his shirt. "Merry Christmas!" It read with a small sketch of Aeris. He smiled to himself and got up. He went to the bathroom to take a shower when he saw something that surprised him. Lipstick off of a pair of lips was on his forehead. "_Well this wouldn't be the first time I've been kissed by…" _ "Aeris!" He yelled out of the bathroom. No answer. "Aeris?" He yelled one more time. Again no reply. He went into the living room and saw her in the beanbag chair. "Hey what's up with- Oh…" She was asleep, he tip-toed out of the room. He took his shower, washed off the lipstick, and decided to forget about it.

**Back to the present (Again)**

**General POV**

"I've been denying my love for you since that day." Aeris said quietly

"But not anymore." She said smiling.

"That day showed me that you cared for me enough to work all day just to make me happy. It meant a lot to me Leo, I mean I beat you and insult you and sent you to the hospital and still, you work all day to buy me a game. I'd be crazy if I didn't love you by then." Aeris explained.

"I love you Leo and I always will, no matter what."

"I love myself too." Leo said teasingly.

"But I love you more." Leo finished.

They both smiled at each other. As this happened the large truck in front of them blew a flat. There was a loud pop and a piece of rubber flew over their car.

"HOLY HELL!" Yelled Leo, "FUCK!" Yelled Aeris.

The tire had missed completely, and Leo and Aeris caught their breath.

"God that scared the piss out of me…" Aeris said winded.

"I think that was pretty awesome!" Leo said grinning.

"You need a good scare every once in a while." He said

"Leo I thought we were going to get hit by that thing, not the kind of thing that you need to get sacred by every once in a while, and you quite nearly pissed your pants yourself!" She said.

"I still thought it was cool…" Leo said quietly. Aeris sighed and looked out the window.

**About thirty minutes later.**

"Only an hour until we're home." Leo said reading a sign on the side of the road.

"It will feel good to sleep in my own bed tonight." He said.

"We'll see about that…" Aeris said quietly.

"Huh?" Leo asked.

"Just talking to myself." Aeris said quickly.

Leo eyed her with curiosity.

"Ok then…" He replied and continued driving down road 401.

"_Almost home…" _Leo thought. This brought another smile to his face.

**AND WE ARE FINISHED… with that chapter. If you think it's good, review. If you think it's bad, review. I respect your opinion so feel free to say whatever you want, good or bad. You will not be seen as a dick if you think it's bad. Oh and for those of you that are going to review was it worth the wait? If you review you get kudos. (Heh PGR)**

**Thanks 4 support **_**~Foot Pains**_


	8. Chapter 8 Home

**Chapter 8-Home**

**General POV**

The silence of the apartment was broken by the sound of a key being put into a lock and the opening of the door. The two walked inside, Leo stopped a few steps after walking in, while Aeris was putting her stuff back in her room. Leo looked around, and he smiled. He was home, somehow he knew he would find himself here again, and he was happy. Aeris peeked around the corner and saw Leo standing there.

"Glad to be home?" Aeris asked.

"Very glad." He responded cheerfully.

"So am I." She admitted.

"Yeah I guess this place would be a hell of a lot quieter without me here." He admitted shrugging.

He started walking towards his room

"Enjoying your bed?" Aeris asked somewhat teasingly.

"You have no idea." Leo responded smiling.

Aeris laid down beside him.

"I do now." She said smiling and cuddled up next to Leo.

Leo put his arms around her and they both just lay there quietly for a while.

"So you sleeping with me tonight?" Leo asked his old friend.

"If you mean sex, then no. But sleeping, I think can happen." She responded.

**The short conclusion to this story. Eh, it had a good run. Thanks to all of you who reviewed. Sorry that the end took so long and it so uneventful. Just wanted to get this done so I can move on. I have kinda took a break from writing. But now I will try to get some chapters done for Paying in Blood. I hope you all had a great Christmas and enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it. **

**I love you all **_**~ FootPains**_


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